NIH, AHRQ, and CDC are seeking comments from the public on the impact of eliminating the correction window from the electronic grant application submission process on applicant organizations and the timing of such a change.

The Grants.gov Program Management Office (PMO) is developing a draft business case for the “next generation” of Grants.gov. The PMO plans to have the draft ready for Grants Policy Board/Grants Executive Board review by early April.

In a post on the Grants.gov Blog, the PMO is “reaching out to all Grants.gov stakeholders (e.g., the grantor agencies, grantee organizations, OMB and others), in addition to sources such as user comments on this blog, to gather recommendations on requirements and priorities.”

March 10, 2010

The ACUC is transitioning from an email-based protocol process to a web-based system called Berkeley eProtocol that is accessible via CalNet authentication. During this transition, “No Change” annual renewals may still be made using the email process but all New and de novo protocols must be submitted via eProtocol. Submission of revisions will be considered on a case-by-case basis. For more information, please see the ACUC eProtocol page.

March 05, 2010

The State of California has issued a revised 700-U Statement of Economic Interest for Principal Investigators for immediate use. The revised form, dated 2009/2010, is available on the Conflict of Interest Committee web site and is the only version that will now be accepted. If you have any questions please contact Jyl Baldwin (jbaldwin@berkeley.edu, 2-8117).

While few substantive changes have been made to the form itself, the instructions, particularly with respect to the definition of “reporting period” for items 3.C and 3.F have been revised.

State of California law requires disclosure of financial interest in the sponsor of a research project; the donor of a research gift; and, under certain circumstances, the provider of materials under a Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) when that sponsor, donor, or provider is a non-governmental source. For research projects, the Statement of Economic Interests for Principal Investigators (Form 700-U) should accompany the proposal and Proposal Review Form to the Sponsored Projects Office or to the Industry Alliances Office. For MTAs, the Form 700-U should accompany the Material Transfer Agreement Review Form to the Industry Alliances Office.

March 04, 2010

The National Science Foundation is developing an Open Government Plan that will serve as the roadmap for the agency’s plans to improve transparency, better integrate public participation and collaboration into the NSF core mission, and become more innovative and efficient.

NSF is inviting the public to share ideas and suggestions “on how to increase transparency, collaboration, participation, and innovation in its everyday business” using a new OpenNSF web site. NSF will be accepting ideas until March 19, 2010.

OpenNSF allows participants to:

Share - Contribute an idea for others to comment on (requires account log-in)

March 01, 2010

The new left menu provides improved site navigation. Another new feature is a search tool that includes search results from the RAC web site, Research Advocate, and other sites of offices within RAC such as the Sponsored Projects Office.